Moonlight
by rwbyfics
Summary: Weiss hissed out Ruby's name, more like a curse than a call. There was no reply, and Weiss stumbled onto the carpet. She climbed the rickety bedpost as quickly as she could without disrupting their makeshift structure and shoved back Ruby's covers. Weiss was a millisecond away from berating the younger girl when her mouth fell open, slack with disbelief. Written for Kino.
1. Chapter 1

Moonlight spilled like silk through the dorm's window, casting glowing shadows against the thick carpet. Yang's soft breathing and Blake's occasional snuffles and drowsy mumbles were the only noises in the team's shared room. Weiss slept on her side, hands tucked neatly under the cool silk of her pillowcase, petal pink lips parted in quiet breaths. Her hair spread around her like a pool of glimmering ivory. Short, dark lashes rested against alabaster skin, and the high slope of her nose was silhouetted in shadow.

The heiress would have continued to sleep peacefully, if not for the muffled groan that thrummed above her. The metal lacing of the Ruby's mattress amplified the noise tenfold with a disconcerting, tinny aftereffect.

Weiss thumped the mattress with her foot and screwed her eyes shut, willing the disturbance to fall away at will, but the high pitched whimper from above her stirred her fully awake. Zwei had already been shipped back to Ruby and Yang's father, so there was no need for such animalistic noises to be in the dorm room.

Weiss hissed out Ruby's name, more like a curse than a call. There was no reply, and Weiss stumbled onto the carpet. She climbed the rickety bedpost as quickly as she could without disrupting their makeshift structure and shoved back Ruby's covers. Weiss was a millisecond away from berating the younger girl when her mouth fell open, slack with disbelief.

She was not expecting a dog. Nobody in their right mind would pull back the covers of their team leader's bed and expect to see a small dog with messy black fur and pointed ears instead of a coquettishly pretty, fifteen year old girl. Weiss stared, wide eyed and mouth hanging open for a few good seconds before trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes. Surely it was a hallucination; she did miss Zwei after all… but even after trying to wake herself up, the dog was still there, huddled in a small nest of sheets and cloth, ears pinned to the back of its skull. Ruby was nowhere to be found, instead replaced with the puppy.

Weiss stared intently at it – the dog had Ruby's eyes.

Of course it did.

Perfect.

Wide, watering silver eyes that always looked doleful and wet, and instead of being attached to the hyperactive dolt, they were now on some random dog. Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose between thumb and forefinger and sighed.

Weiss had heard of some Faunus that had more animal in them rather than human, those that mysteriously transformed into hulking beasts every month at the height of the moon, raging with bloodlust and uncontrollable power, but the animal was no bigger that her Humanities textbook. The dog gave a throaty whimper, almost a weeping howl.

The dog was waiting for Weiss to climb in. Weiss mumbled out a few choice words but pulled herself into the bunk nonetheless, tugging her nightgown below her knees.

She settled down in the sweet-scented covers, pulling the blanket up until it was tucked under her neck. Within minutes, the dog whimpered in protest at Weiss. Weiss huffed out an exasperated breath and pulled Ruby – _Could she even call her Ruby? Dog? Animal? Werewolf?_ _Weiss didn't even know anymore_ – closer to her and wrapped the sheet around them.

"Oh, hush." Weiss whispered when the puppy nuzzled into her neck with a contented sigh. "Just go to bed before I change my mind, will you?"

The first thing Weiss saw when she woke up the next morning was a pair of silver eyes. The warm silk of soft fur was gone from her arms and had been replaced with –

_God dammit_.

Ruby's waist was soft against Weiss's fingertips, her palms resting against the exact place where the younger girl's tank top rode up. Ruby was staring in awe at Weiss, as if memorizing every inch of her face and committing it to memory.

Weiss blushed and scooted as far away from Ruby as possible, cheeks burning hot in the morning sunshine. She cleared her throat and spoke, trying to keep her voice from trembling.

"Would you care to explain to me what happened last night?"

Ruby furrowed her brows and frowned.

"What?"

Weiss growled.

"Don't play dumb, you know, the… _thing_."

Ruby widened her eyes and stared at Weiss as if she had grown a second head.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Weiss knew when Ruby was lying, all of her little twitches and tells, but the leader was being wholeheartedly sincere. Weiss buried her head in her hands and sighed.

"Weiss, can you tell me why I woke up with you spooning me?" Ruby asked, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I mean, not that I didn't like it, it was really nice, and you kinda snore a little, but I still really liked it – "

Weiss cut Ruby off with a kiss to her cheek, warm flesh meeting the supple skin of Ruby's face. Ruby leaned into the touch and closed her eyes as Weiss drew back.

"It's complicated."


	2. Chapter 2

The month passed, and Weiss had managed to forget about the whole canine Ruby ordeal. Mostly. Actually, it was still fresh in her mind and every time her team leader even looked her way, all she could see was the tiny dog that had whimpered so heartbreakingly that even she had almost shed a tear.

Weiss bided her time, attended lessons studiously, and wrote all her papers, but every night, she would creep down to the library to research more on rare Faunus.

Some were trapped in Menagerie, kept under government supervision to withhold their violent transformations from villagers and citizens of Remnant. Others had managed to go under corrective surgeries and others had been eliminated when they posed a greater threat to humans than local Grimm. But all reports of these Faunus were behemoth beasts with a bloodlust that sang through their veins like liquid fire.

Not miniature dogs with big silver eyes that _really_ liked to cuddle.

A few almanacs had been dusted off, and Weiss determined that the next full moon would be in a few nights. The heiress had prepared to stay up all night; she had finished all of her classwork for the week and adjusted her sleeping pattern so that she would be alert at awake and the chances of sleep-deprived hallucinations would be rare.

If she was going to research this, she was going to do it right.

Ruby went to bed that night with a throbbing headache, declaring that she would finally be quitting her addiction to chocolate chip cookies with whipped cream on top. Weiss lay restless in her bunk; her breath whistling out of her lungs as she stared fixated on the bed above her.

Up there, Ruby would be transforming, the moonlight that bled pale and quiet taking hold of her and rewriting her DNA to accommodate magic and old folklore. According to a few theses from Signal Academy's lab, the pain of mutation was nearly unbearable.

The grandfather clock in the hall lowed its daily announcement of midnight and the telltale whimper rang around the halo of Weiss's hair, leaking into her ears. She sprang up, but instead of climbing up the bedpost, Weiss crossed the dorm room in a few purposeful strides. She nudged Blake with her finger, but when the Faunus remained asleep, the heiress chose to jab two insistent fingers into the Huntress's side.

Weiss dodged the first swing – it was sloppy with sleep-heavy limbs – and caught Blake's other fist in her hand.

"Don't you start with me now." Weiss warned. Blake groaned under her breath and mumbled a litany of curse words under her breath. "Wake up Yang and turn on the light."

Blake opened her mouth to protest but Weiss silenced her with a furious glare.

"I'll explain in a minute."

Weiss released the Faunus from her grasp and climbed the bunk bed. The covers were thrown back, and lo and behold, Ruby's canine form was quivering under sweat soaked sheets. Weiss pet through Ruby's dark fur once and tucked her under her arm before jumping down onto the carpeted floor. Yang was propped against the neat stack of books that lifted her bed.

Her blonde hair was piled atop her head in a massive bun, a few ringlets brushing along the line of her jaw. Blake had her head in her hands and was wincing at the florescent light that sent its artificial glow around the room.

"Look." Weiss spoke bluntly, shoving the puppy forward in Blake and Yang's line of sight. Blake looked up from the safety of her palms and _hissed_, pointed incisors jagged in her mouth.

"What the _hell_ is that?" Blake spat, tongue heavy with venom.

"_This_ is Ruby."

Yang stared at the dog intently, lips pursed.

"For God's sakes, I thought we were done with mail-in dogs after we shipped Zwei home where he _belongs_." Blake growled, teeth glimmering and bared in a defensive maneuver. Ruby wagged her tail and yipped in response.

"Weiss, where did you get the dog from?" Yang asked, curious.

"I didn't _get_ it from anywhere. It's Ruby." Weiss stated again, shaking the dog for emphasis.

Yang opened her eyes a bit and pressed her lips together. She raised her hands in a placating gesture.

"Weiss, are you feeling alright? Did you get enough sleep last night? How about water? Did you have enough to eat?" Yang was an older sister at heart, and her wingspan of instinctive love included Weiss as well.

Weiss stomped her foot in exasperation and Ruby whined, ears flattening.

"Listen, you guys, I know you think this is crazy and that_ I'm_ crazy, but just look. Look at Ruby's bunk. She's gone. And in her place? A teeny-tiny dog with her eyes." Blake's top lips settled over her incisors before she quirked her brow. The usual inquisitiveness in her amber eyes began to return. Yang nibbled contemplatively on her lower lip.

"Last month, I woke up during the night, and Ruby was… whining. So I went up to check on her but she was gone. And this puppy was in her place." Blake's mouth hung open in disbelief. "So I stayed up there for the night and in the morning, Ruby was human and normal, and she didn't remember… anything." Weiss brought Ruby back to her arms and pet through her fur absently.

"Yang, do you know anything about this?" Weiss asked, focusing her attention on the sleepy-eyed blonde.

Yang looked thoughtful and faraway for a few seconds before Blake elbowed her in the ribs.

"What is it, Yang?"

"Our mom used to tell us stories. About ancestors who could… change forms." Yang licked her lips in contemplation. "Our mom came from furthest corner of Remnant – near the ocean with countryside and folklore and shanties and voodoo. I thought they were just stories." Yang's lavender eyes settled on Ruby, who nuzzled into Weiss's collarbones. "Apparently not."

Blake took a sidelong gaze at Ruby and spoke in a measured voice. It was clear she was trying to suppress the growl that rumbled in her ribs. "It's an incredibly rare occurrence to see these types of Faunus. But with the aforementioned setting of Ruby's mother's roots, it's certainly believable."

The conversation lulled into silence, only interrupted by the happy yips as Weiss scratched behind Ruby's ears. Blake passed a hand through her hair and Yang cocked her head.

"So what now?" Blake asked, dusting the silk of her nightgown. Yang yawned loudly, stretching on her toes until she spoke.

"We can figure it out in the morning. But for now, let's all get some rest." Weiss was about to take Ruby back to her bunk for bed, but Yang had already spread her and Blake's blankets and quilts onto the floor, piling downy pillows onto the pile. Blake tugged a few corners into place and glanced pointedly towards Weiss.

Weiss sighed and set Ruby on the ground, allowing the Faunus to roam around the sea of blankets and covers. Weiss settled two blankets and another multitude of fluffy pillows onto the ground before settling down. Blake turned off the light and tucked herself into the curve of Yang's shoulder, leaving Ruby to cuddle up between her teammates in a warm pile of limbs and fur.

Weiss patted Ruby's head, smiling tiredly as the dog sighed contentedly.

"Good night, dolt."


	3. Chapter 3

The original plan had not been Patch. No, the original plan was supposed to be asking multiple professors and using Weiss's Schnee Dust Company code overwrite to hack into government files about rare Faunus cases. In no way was Patch mentioned as a back up plan, but team RWBY were on an express Bullhead to the docks where Tai Yang would meet them, so perhaps planning wasn't really their thing.

When Ruby had woken up the night after her transformation, she had no idea what had happened. Yang and Blake had been incredulous, and Weiss triumphant.

They'd researched the topic, and learned as much as they could before they'd exhausted every option they had. The whole month had been full of dead-ends and confusion, and everyone was tired except for Ruby, who slept, obliviously peaceful.

Weiss, Blake, and Yang had been in the library, piles of books crowded around them like a literary fortress. Yang had started talking of Patch, and how much she missed her dad.

"He would know what to do. He's a professor – always really smart about situations where nobody has any idea what they're doing. He helped a lot of people on Patch when there was a Grimm infestation."

Weiss perked up from her makeshift pillow of almanacs.

"Then let's go."

"Go where?" Blake furrowed her brow in question.

"Let's go to Patch and talk to your dad."

Yang gave a loud peal of laughter and stared back at Weiss, who remained stoic.

"Oh, wait, you're serious?"

Weiss scoffed in disbelief.

"When have I ever _not_ been serious?"

Blake glanced over at Weiss.

"There's no way we could do that. How would we leave Beacon? Who would give us permission?"

Yang tugged on her hair and shrugged her shoulders.

"Ozpin's always liked us. Maybe he'd let us go."

* * *

><p>"Absolutely not!"<p>

"Glynda – "

"This is ridiculous, Ms. Long! You can't expect Professor Ozpin to let an entire team of Huntresses leave school for a trip to Patch! Honestly, I expected more from you than barging in here at – " Glynda shoved the sleeve of her robe up her arm and glanced down at her elegant watch. " – three in the morning! Unacceptable!"

Weiss ducked her head at the barrage of reprimands.

"Glynda, please – "

"I've half a mind to put you all in detention right now – "

Ozpin held up his hand, and rose to his feet. He faced the three girls and shook his head.

"This is certainly odd, even for you three. And I put emphasis on the word 'three'. Where exactly is your leader?"

Blake opened her mouth to answer but Weiss cut her off.

"A-Asleep, sir."

"I see." Ozpin took a sidelong glance at Glynda, who fumed silently, arms crossed tightly. "As unconventional as this request is, I will grant it – "

"_Ozpin_!"

"_Because_ I know you would not have made this request unless it was absolutely necessary. I trust that you will handle yourselves with integrity and pick up your training from where you've left off."

Yang grinned at her teammates before thanking Ozpin.

"Thanks, Professor. You have no idea how much it means to us." Weiss and Blake nodded their agreement, and Glynda shoved her head into her palm.

"Well then, get going!" She barked suddenly, and three pairs of confused eyes snapped to her. "The Bullhead will be waiting for you at the docks, and I expect that you have _somebody_ living on Patch to pick you up – "

Glynda grabbed her Scroll and started to tap a few applications to life, pulling a few holographic projections to the side for later. "Hurry it along, ladies, the sooner you leave, the sooner we can all go back to a normal form of life!"

Ozpin smiled at the girls warmly.

"I suggest you listen to Professor Goodwitch if you want some mode of transportation back to Beacon." Weiss, Blake, and Yang rushed out of Ozpin's office.

"Safe travels."


	4. Chapter 4

"Ruby! Ruby, _wake up_ – we're going to Patch, here, wear this – " Yang slammed the room light switch on and tossed a pair of sweatpants and a Beacon Academy tank top up to Ruby's bunk. The younger Huntress blurted out a string of nonsensical words and shot to sit up. The younger girl stared wide-eyed as Blake and Weiss crammed a few clothes into their bags.

"Wait, what? Why are we going to Patch? What time is it?"

"No time to explain! We're going to visit your father." Weiss spoke dismissively while tossing a hairbrush into her backpack. Blake threw Yang's bag to her, already packed. Yang gave her a swift kiss as thanks, and changed into a warmer pair of clothes. Ruby struggled with pulling her shirt over her bedhead and jumped down from her bunk.

"What is even _happening _right now?!"

Yang pulled her Scroll from her pocket and pulled up her father's contact information. She dialed him and Ruby could hear her father on the other end, groggy and muffled but coherent.

"Hi, Pops. No time to talk but we need you to pick us up at the docks in a few hours. No, the whole team's coming. No, Pops, we don't need our passports. _Yes_, Pops, I know where my passport is – Dad, come pick us up at the docks, okay?" Ruby pantomimed a few gestures and Yang tossed her a thumbs-up. "Ruby says she misses you. Okay. Okay. Bye, Pops; I'll see you soon. Love you too."

Ruby threw her clothes into a rucksack and laced up her boots, still trying to figure out if she was having a vivid dream. Blake strapped Gambol Shroud to her back and the gleam of metal against lamplight was so real that Ruby knew she was awake. She yawned a few times and stretched out her sleep-heavy arms.

Weiss pulled her bag higher up her arm and walked to the door. Blake and Ruby followed suit, and Yang threw a book into her bag before walking out the door. According to its ancient print, the full moon would occur tomorrow night.

* * *

><p>The Bullhead flew silently over the ocean that separated Patch from Vale. They were almost at the docks; thanks to the Schnee Dust Company sponsorship, the ship they were on was moving twice as fast as a normal one. Weiss avoided looking at her family's crest stamped on every surface of the Air Ship, the pointed lines of the snowflake cutting across the backs of their seats like a razor blade.<p>

The rest of Team RWBY had explained to their leader that they were being sent to Patch for a small vacation; Yang quickly lied and said that JNPR's would be next week. Ruby had nodded along, but wondered aloud why Ozpin hadn't posted the news on the team leader forum of .

Blake and Yang exchanged a fervid announcement and Weiss slid in after being silent for the whole ride.

"It was Father's idea to sponsor the trips; he thought it would be a good rest for Huntsmen and Huntresses. He spoke to Ozpin last night and they chose us to go first. A spontaneous arrangement, I guess you could say."

"Ooooohhh." Ruby nodded and finally put the notion to rest, pulling her Scroll from the pockets of her sweatpants. Weiss crossed her legs and met eyes with Blake and Yang, who stared wide-eyed at her quickly crafted lie. She shot them both a pointed glare and opened the book on her lap.

Yang was about to speak to Weiss but Ruby cut her off instead.

"_Yaaaaaang_, guess who just beat your score in Flappy Grimm ~"

"Damn you, Ruby!"


	5. Chapter 5

The Bullhead flew back to Vale, the hum of its engine disappearing into the dawn. The sun was setting lazily on the coast of Patch, and Tai Yang was bathed in majestic golden light as he hugged his daughters. The professor could have been a model on the weekends, with a handsome jawline and lavender eyes, and the curve of his muscles nearly tearing through his simple white shirt and sweater.

Tai had clearly given Yang her blonde hair and winsome smile, but the curves and dimples of his cheeks were the twins of Ruby's. Weiss and Blake watched as Tai let out a giddy laugh while cradling his daughters in tanned muscular arms.

"My girls!" Tai bellowed, squeezing his daughters closer to him. When he let them go, Yang emerged a bit teary eyed, sniffling a bit as she hugged her father again.

"Dad, this is Weiss Schnee, and Blake Belladonna – our teammates!"

Weiss stuck out a dainty hand for a polite handshake, but Tai lifted Blake and Weiss effortlessly, pulling them into a group hug as well. Blake wheezed as a lungful of air was forced out of her, but Tai set her down immediately, along with a slew of apologies.

He looked like Yang, but he acted like Ruby, and the combination was almost unsettling. Tai's cheeks were flushed with excitement and he hefted the girls' entire collection of luggage in his arms. He grinned down at the girls and jutted his chin towards his eldest daughter.

"Yang, show the girls to the house! I'll follow with these." He waggled his mishmash of bags along the muscular swells of his arms. Yang grinned back at her father and fell in step next to Ruby. They linked hands and started to skip down the weatherworn docks of Patch.

The dawn spread shafts of bright gold light across the sandy beaches. Hints of the night edged the sun in lilac daubs, and even Weiss had to admit that Patch was gorgeous. Thick clusters of cottages were spread further ahead, painted in pastels and decorated with woven nets of shells.

An expanse of mountains sat across of the surf, and a winding road of coast highway hugged the base of the peaks. A few motorcycles or energy efficient cars zipped past; a horde of bicyclists raced by as Yang pointed out a few houses.

"That's where two of Dad's colleagues live; they're both deer Faunus and have the _cutest_ babies. That's where the ferryman lives. And that's where the ferryman's ex-wife lives." Yang hiked up the sandy beach before reaching the bottom of a gated staircase.

The gates and banisters were painted sea-foam green and stark white; two small handprints were smudged against one of the posts, and according to the painted scrawl, they belonged to Ruby and Yang. Yang flipped the lock up and held it open for Ruby to go up first.

Zwei howled from inside, excited and gleeful, and when Ruby swung open the door, the corgi burst out in a furry ball. Blake fought the urge to hiss, but when Yang ran a hand down her waist, she settled down, trying to focus on anything but the dog running circles around her ankles.

Weiss scooped up the dog and dissolved into babbling nonsense at him, scratching behind his ears with the flat of her thumb. Ruby held open the door with her foot from inside, already perusing the refrigerator and her father's choice of snacks.

"Go in, go in! Make yourself right at home!" Tai called from the steps, and ran up them two at a time with more than thirty pounds of luggage strapped across his arms. Blake walked in front of Yang, and blinked in surprise.

The cottage was spacious and clean, bright white furniture and honey-wood floors accenting the private beach outside. Blake wandered out into the living room, where a row of curtained French doors had been flung open to invite the sweet ocean breeze. A television had been mounted to the wall, and the screen was intimidatingly large, sleek steel lying thin across the painted wall.

The only part of the whole cottage that was messy was the mantle. It was laden with framed photos and report cards and Yang's acceptance letter to Beacon. A few school photos were propped against the wall, a toothy miniature Yang grinning with her hair pulled into pigtails, a toddling Ruby with short stubby legs and her signature streak of red in her dark hair. It was all so domestic and adorable, and Blake smiled wide at the mementos.

Blake walked back over to the kitchen, where Ruby was still mulling over the choices in the fridge. Weiss was sitting at the dining table, ankles crossed delicately as she stared down at the placemat between her hands. Blake arched an eyebrow and walked over to her, taking a seat opposite her.

"Why do you look like you swallowed ricin?"

Weiss shot Blake a deadly look and swallowed before staring down at her hands again.

"This is the first time I'm meeting my girlfriend's father… and the first time I've had a girlfriend – but I guess you could say I'm nervous." Weiss spoke with her head down, so her words came out muffled and odd.

Blake arched a brow.

"Weiss. I'm sure that you'll do fine. I mean, you've always done well with authority figures before. I don't expect this instance to be an exception."

Weiss looked up, cyan eyes wide.

"Thanks, Blake. What's with all the sudden optimism?"

Blake swung her legs over the side of her chair before standing.

"Because I have to impress my girlfriend's father too."


	6. Chapter 6

"So tell me girls, what brings you to Patch? And on such short notice too."

Tai Yang had made heaping plates of bacon and eggs for all the girls, and they were all seated around his table, shoveling food into their mouths. The food was delectable; Tai had added a few sizzling swabs of butter to the skillet and team RWBY were more than grateful after months of Beacon's fiber-rich diet tailored to Huntsmen and Huntresses.

Tai was enjoying his third mug of black coffee, and had leapt into conversation with the girls as if he had known them for years. There was a chorus of thanks all throughout breakfast, but Tai waved them all away, repeating that it was only his pleasure.

Yang swallowed her last gulp of juice before speaking.

"Yeah… sorry about that." Weiss shot Yang a look, reminding her to keep up with the lie. "Weiss's… father sponsored vacations for all of the teams at Beacon. Isn't that nice?"

Tai settled his elbows across the dining table and smiled.

"That's very nice of him. Weiss, the next time you speak to him, be sure to give him my thanks." Weiss smiled courteously and nodded daintily.

"I'll remember to do exactly that."

"I appreciate it, Weiss. You have no idea how happy I am to see my girls again." Tai reached across the table and covered his daughters' hands with his. "They're all so grown up. Even my little baby." Tai ruffled Ruby's hair and laughed when his daughter scrunched his face up exasperatedly.

"Now tell me. Are my daughters as messy as they were when they lived here?"

* * *

><p>Ruby had gone to nap in her old bedroom after a two-hour Air Ship ride and a half-finished night of sleep. The sun streamed through the window, hardwood floors hot against Yang's bare feet. She pulled a few grapes from the bowl in her lap, offering one to Blake as they sat on the couch.<p>

Blake accepted, popping the fruit into her mouth. Weiss emerged from the hallway, her hair pushed up into a high bun. She had changed into a pair of lace shorts and a blouse, and she looked rather laidback in the change of scenery.

"Yang, let's talk to your dad. He needs to know before tomorrow night."

Yang locked eyes with Blake, who nodded her assent. They all traveled down the hall to Tai's study. The door was already open, and Tai was arranging a few papers into manila folders.

"Well, hey there, girls! What can I do for you?" Tai took off his thick reading glasses and set them on the desk.

"Dad… we're not here for a vacation. I'm sorry we lied." Yang confessed, hands laced together in guilt.

Tai smiled and burst out laughing.

"Sweetheart, I've known you since you were in diapers, I can figure out when you're lying. But I knew that you would tell me what's going on sooner or later. So, take a seat, and spill."


	7. Chapter 7

"A dog?"

Weiss, Blake, and Yang all nodded in unison from where they were crammed onto Tai's small leather couch. Tai rubbed his palm across his face and opened his mouth to speak before thinking against it. He seemed to be in deep contemplation before speaking again.

"Really, _a dog_?"

The chorus of affirmations he received sent him shoving his head into his hands.

"Dad, the full moon's tomorrow and she's changed twice already. You're the only one who can help." Yang said, leaning forward on her elbows.

"Summer was a shape-shifter." Tai said softly, more to himself than the girls. Tai looked up at Yang and smiled sadly. "She's just like her, even down to the transformations."

Yang stood and hugged her dad to her side.

"I know, Pops. But we need to figure out what's going on. You've gotta help us. For Ruby." Yang hugged her father tighter. "And for Summer."

Tai's thumb lingered on his bottom lip as he thought carefully. He closed his eyes for a few moments, and wheeled his chair over the expansive library behind him.

"Let's do this, then."

* * *

><p>"Alright." Tai balanced a massive anthology of Faunus across his entire palm, and licked the tip of his thumb. " 'After a cycle of full moons – two hundred is the most commonly recorded number – the Faunus in our aforementioned patients' blood will awaken. The change will happen around the same time – a pregnant moon turning two legs into four and teeth into ivory daggers. Dr. Blanco of Mistral's United Doctors has overseen five patients of these kinds – and has seen three destroy their holding cells in Menagerie. While some are not violent, most have a violent transformation, and often lash out at humans.' "<p>

Yang looked down at the small group from her perch on a library ladder, the name of a book and its author scrawled across the inside of her arm. Blake was leafing through a few stacks of books that Tai had assigned to her, and Weiss was looking over a half-crumbling newsletter addressing rare Faunus.

"Oh, this is interesting." Blake began, following the line of text down the page with her finger. " 'Every once in a while, a Faunus is born without ears or a tail, and have the opportunity to live normal lives without the token oppression that comes with the heritage.' "

"Oh!" Yang plucked the book from the shelf just above her head, and waved it in victory. "Dad, catch!" Tai lifted his hands above his head without even looking up, and continued to mutter a few pages aloud to him. Yang lobbed the book down, and her father caught it neatly and flipped open to a bookmarked page.

" ' These Faunus have been known to thrive in society, while others had been forcibly put down after their rampages on villages.' " Weiss's enthusiasm tapered out slowly.

"Lovely." Blake shot back dryly, the rasp of her voice a twin tune to the crisp sound of a page turning. Weiss held her tongue, preferring not to throw back some snarky remark in front of Ruby's father.

Tai ran his tongue across his lips and set his eyes on a new page of the book Yang had thrown to him. His eyes moved quickly, lilac irises magnified through his glasses. He nodded and smiled excitedly until he stood up.

"Ah-_hah!_ 'These types of Faunus are carried on through genetic makeup – ' "

"Which would explain why Yang doesn't transform!" Blake exclaimed. Yang leapt down from her ladder and followed her teammates to crowd behind her father.

" 'And are fairly consistent through generations. The full moon inspires the change in all of our rare cases, and have been given the official name of – ' "

"_Lycanthrope_." The ancient Latin word fell off of Blake's tongue into the silent room, and all remained quiet until Yang spoke up with a mutter.

"My sister's a werewolf."


	8. Chapter 8

"A dog?!"

Ruby sat on the couch in her father's living room, staring up at her father and the rest of her team. She laughed in disbelief, but when she was met with a few sympathetic faces, she shrieked.

"Wait, _what_?"

Weiss pointed out a passage that she had highlighted with yellow marker. Ruby read it quickly and laughed again, louder and shriller.

"That's ridiculous! I don't even remember turning into a 'werewolf'!" Ruby cried, throwing her hands up in the air in an attempt to end the conversation.

Blake shook her head, crossing her arms across her chest.

"You've transformed into a small puppy for the past two months now. The second night, you woke up on the floor because Weiss told us about you and we wanted to keep an eye on you. Apparently, you just… blank out."

"This is a bad joke, you guys. C'mon, this is unbelievable. Right, Yang, Dad?"

Yang reached out to touch her younger sister's shoulder.

"Sis, it happened to Mom too."

Ruby looked up at the mention of her mother, and met eyes with her father for affirmation. Tai nodded a few times.

"Ruby, we're not here for vacation. We're here because we wanted Dad to help us with the research. I'm sorry we didn't tell you before, but we wanted to make sure that we were right." Yang settled down on the couch next to her sister. "I love you, baby sis. I just wanted the best for you – we all do."

Ruby sighed and gazed up at her companions.

"Okay. So what's the plan?"

* * *

><p>Tai Yang had agreed that they would record the entire night to show Ruby when she was back to normal in the morning. Weiss was designated to cuddle with Ruby during the painful time, and Blake and Yang would give moral support while Tai observed and made notes.<p>

It was early in the evening when they finished planning, and Ruby was nervous for the full moon's arrival.

"I just don't want it to hurt! It won't hurt… right?" Ruby perched on her father's kitchen counter as he cooked dinner for them. Tai's apron fit far too snugly on his broad chest, but he was far too occupied with the chicken he was frying to reevaluate his fashion choices. He turned the stove down a bit and turned to face his youngest daughter.

"Ruby, do you remember when you were seven and you got your first training scythe?" Ruby nodded slowly. "Do you remember how you almost killed your uncle Qrow after one training session?" Ruby snickered a bit and nodded again. "So then I'm sure you remember every time that you showed incredible bravery and strength. Tonight, you'll fall asleep, and _poof_, you wake up in the morning."

Tai spread one large hand towards the rest of Ruby's team, who crowded around a recently unearthed scrapbook.

"And we'll all take care of you."

Ruby looked up uncertainly at her father.

"Promise?"

"I promise." Tai turned back to his chicken and flipped the pan with a flick of his wrist. "Okay, now taste this."


	9. Chapter 9

Ruby was stretched out on Weiss's lap when Tai called from the kitchen.

"Ruby, Yang – I need you two to go down to the store and get me some berries for our pie! They're closing in a bit, so Ruby's Semblance might come in handy." Tai snickered at his own joke.

Ruby stood up and followed Yang to the kitchen. The blonde had been showing Blake her old bedroom, and had emerged a bit glassy-eyed. Tai dropped a few Lien into Yang's outstretched hand, and smiled at them.

"Ruby, be careful running around. We don't want you blasting a hole through that stop sign on Gild Street."

"Dad, that was _one _time!"

"C'mon, Blake!" Yang called, but Tai held up a hand.

"No, no, no. I need Blake and Weiss to help me with setting the table. Now off you go, my darling daughters." Blake and Weiss exchanged a frantic look with their respective girlfriends, but when Ruby and Yang left, they smiled a bit sheepishly.

"What can we do for you, Professor?" Weiss asked.

"Please, call me Tai." He retrieved a stack of thick ceramic plates from a cabinet and handed them to the girls. "Now let's get to know each other."

"Weiss, how long have you and Ruby been together?"

Tai was sitting across from Blake and Weiss while Ruby and Yang were out, and both of the girls were fidgeting under the protective father's eye.

"About five months." Weiss spoke carefully.

"How about you, Blake?"

"We've just crossed eight months. Weiss and Ruby took a while to figure out they liked each other, but with Yang and I… it was instant."

Tai smiled and set his jaw on a curled fist.

"Listen, girls. I've never wanted anything more than my daughters' happiness. And it's more than clear to me that you make them smile. I trust that you'll take care of them. And if you ever need anything, please, let me know."

Weiss and Blake smiled warmly at Tai.

"You're part of the family now."

* * *

><p>Dinner had been chock full of comfort food, plates of fried chicken and bread rolls and braised vegetables lining the table. Tai had baked a pie from scratch with the berries that Ruby and Yang had bought. The filling was Ruby and Yang's favorite: lemon cream with the slightest hint of vanilla. The berries had been folded into the airy concoction, the dark tang of the fruits mixed with the sweet filling.<p>

Every plate had been cleared away, and all of the girls were groggy from the massive dinner. Night was falling faster, and the tide was rising outside their window. Blake had borrowed a book from Tai's expansive library, and was already engrossed with it. Weiss had taken a shower, and Ruby and Yang were on the floor, trying to see who could get each other in a headlock first.

Tai was putting away a load of laundry and fixing Ruby's room so that her entire team could stay there for the night. The team spent the rest of the night talking, enjoying their first day in a while without classwork or training.

Tai joined them in the living room after a while, wrapping his arms around his daughters. Weiss smiled a bit sadly at the way he was loving and affectionate, the polar opposite to her father.

Blake checked the clock on her Scroll and announced that it was thirty minutes to midnight. The moon would be at its full power in just a few minutes. Ruby's hands knotted together instinctively, and screwed her eyes shut. She made a noise of pure anxiousness, but Weiss brushed her palm against her cheek.

"You'll be fine, dunce. We're taking care of you."

Ruby's childhood bedroom was less embarrassing that Weiss had thought it would be. The walls were painted a soft shade of pastel pink, and the bed was large and plush. She had a view of the beach below, and a few pictures were tacked against her walls. Friends, family members, most were with an older man with an impressive sweep of silver hair who held a scythe that looked alike to hers.

Team RWBY had changed into their pajamas, and Ruby settled into her bed, pulling the covers tighter around her. The room was quiet for a while, until Ruby let out a heavy sigh.

"I can't sleep. I'm nervous."

Yang gave a light little laugh.

"Then why not call Dad in here? He can tell us a bedtime story, for old time's sake."

Ruby grinned at her sister.

"_Daaaaaaaaaaad!_"

* * *

><p>"And then, <em>boom<em>! Cookies everywhere!" Tai gesticulated as the fairy tale came to a dramatic close. "The End." All of the girls gave him a round of applause, and the Professor bowed extravagantly.

"Bedtime for all of you. You may all be Huntresses-in-training, but rest is important."

"Night, Dad!" Ruby and Yang yelled as their father closed the door.

The girls rested for a moment before Weiss made a little noise.

"Ruby, set this to record on your nightstand. We need to show you the footage when you wake up in the morning." Ruby followed her partner's directions, and yawned loudly.

"G'night, guys."

* * *

><p>Weiss woke up with a start, and poked her head over the foot of Ruby's bed. The small dog was there, whimpering as the moonlight spread through her room. Weiss woke up her teammates and set to comforting Ruby. The puppy nuzzled into her neck and she smiled while petting her.<p>

Yang opened the door and called for her dad. Tai came rushing in, glasses slammed precariously onto his face. When he caught sight of the small dog, he gasped despite himself.

He reached out for Ruby, and carried his daughter in his arms.

"Poor thing." He patted Ruby's head, her downy black fur soft under his large hands. "But she looks cute as ever, doesn't she, girls?" The rest of team RWBY hummed their agreement.

Tai handed Ruby back to Weiss, and pulled his Scroll from his pockets. He began to type out a few notes, looking inside Ruby's floppy ears, and checking her sharp little teeth.

"Well, girls. I've taken all the notes I can get." He smiled at the small pup dozing in Weiss's arms. "She'll change back when the sun rises. And because I'm a father, I'm inclined to tell you all to go to bed. You'll all be in terrible moods if you don't get enough sleep."

"We will, Mr. Long."

Tai arched a brow at Blake.

"Sorry. I mean, Tai."

Tai smiled at them.

"Sleep well, girls. We'll all talk in the morning." Tai gave Ruby one last pat on the head. "And good night, my darling canine daughter."


End file.
